room, but in a sultry, candlelit way. And he towered over her.
She was sitting down, Libby reminded herself sensibly. Of course he was towering over her. But he was one big, powerful-looking man…
‘Yes…? No?’ he prompted. ‘The drink?’ he said pleasantly.
He was a couple of years older than she was – maybe thirty. And he was still angling that bad-boy smile. And, no, she wasn’t going to look over her shoulder to see if he was talking to someone else. She had to have more confidence than that.
‘White wine spritzer, wasn’t it?’
‘No. Sorry – what I mean to say is, I’m drinking lemonade with a dash of lime.’
‘Lemonade and lime, please,’ he asked the barman, ‘and a Scotch for me, please.’
Nice manners. But had she agreed to this?
Libby rapidly rejigged her brain cells to take in the dark, flashing eyes, thick, wavy black hair, and totally disreputable stubble of the man who was wearing snug-fitting jeans, highly polished boots, and a beautifully tailored jacket that clung lovingly to his lean frame. Sensing her interest, he turned his head to look at her with amusement in his eyes.
‘Are you trying to pick me up?’ shot out of her mouth without any assistance from her brain at all. ‘Sorry – I don’t know what made me say that.’
‘Maybe you’re unusually intuitive?’ he suggested, trying not to smile.
She’d forgive him this once for mocking her, just for being so easy on the eyes. She couldn’t blame him for getting the wrong idea about her, when she had set out tonight to look the part of confident city girl, and here she was sitting alone at the bar – something she’d never done in her life before. ‘Libby…’ She proffered her hand.
‘Lucaj.’
His grip was warm and firm, and as they shook hands, she realised that while she would normally let go of a stranger’s hand as fast as possible, she was quite happy to hold on to Lucaj. There was something about him that reassured her – which went against all the evidence. Anyone with such a wicked smile, and a mouth like his, spelled danger in any language.
‘So, you’re English, Libby?’
‘Yes, I am.’ She met the clear, intelligent gaze with interest. There was more to Lucaj than met the eyes, she sensed, and what met the eyes was a heart-racing quiver of possibilities. ‘You?’ she prompted before she had chance to consider any of these dangerous possibilities.
‘Let’s just say I’m a citizen of the world – always on the move.’
He was certainly charismatic – eastern European, possibly, she guessed, with those amazing cheekbones – but the humour in his eyes was all his own. And this was all very nice, but she really should have more sense than to talk to a strange man in a bar. ‘I really shouldn’t be doing this,’ she admitted in her usual forthright manner.
‘Shouldn’t be doing what?’ Lucaj demanded as the barman served their drinks.
‘Talking to you – allowing you buy me a drink, when I don’t even know you.’
‘I don’t know you.’ Lucaj flashed a smile that proved his strong white teeth were just as impressive as the rest of him. ‘Am I in danger? If I am, you should do the decent thing and tell me now.’
She laughed to cover for her burning cheeks. Indecent things were uppermost in her mind where Lucaj was concerned.
Shooting into an upright position, she pulled herself together. Acting confident was one thing, but taking it to the next level was something else altogether. ‘I don’t normally do things like this.’
‘But we’re both alone in alone in London. At least, I presume you’re alone?’
‘Yes I am.’ Should she have admitted that? She might be playing a role, but she got the feeling that Lucaj was playing himself.
‘Then, let’s break the rules, Libby. There’s no-one here to see us.’
He gave her that smile again, and it was bone-melting. He smelled amazing too – sandalwood and spice. And they were just two strangers chatting in a bar. Where was the harm in that?
Harm lay in the fact that for the first time in her life, this good girl wished she were bad.
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